


Book Two (Seventh Year)

by CheezLord12



Series: Andromeda Black and the Two Years That Changed Her Life [2]
Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: F/M, Friendship, Humor, Memory Loss, One of thems gay, Romance, Seventh year, Sometimes Angsty
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-30
Updated: 2020-12-30
Packaged: 2021-03-11 02:28:42
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 9
Words: 18,880
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28437651
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CheezLord12/pseuds/CheezLord12
Summary: Andromeda doesn’t remember her sixth year, so she doesn’t know why everyone is staring at her when she comes back to Hogwarts. Will she be able to figure out why that blonde Hufflepuff  and his friends can’t seem to look away from her, why her friends are suddenly spending all their time with her, and the real reason she can’t remember over nine months of her life?
Relationships: Andromeda Black Tonks/Ted Tonks, Bellatrix Black Lestrange & Narcissa Black Malfoy & Andromeda Black Tonks, Original Female Character/Original Male Character
Series: Andromeda Black and the Two Years That Changed Her Life [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2082702
Kudos: 15





	1. Back to Hogwarts

Andromeda's memories of her sixth year were shrouded by a thick fog, and she couldn't remember most of the summer following it. Her family told her she'd been ill, gravely ill. She'd been in school for the start of the year, but had taken a turn for the worse and been returned home. They'd spent nearly four months toiling, holding her back from the brink of death. She was thankful for their efforts, because it meant that she was still here, continuing the Black bloodline.

Her sister grinned at her happily, glancing around Kings Cross as if she was looking for someone, which didn't make any sense. Bellatrix had graduated last year, when Andromeda had been sick. Nonetheless, Andromeda wrapped Bellatrix in a brief good-bye hug, noting the way she splayed her hand out on Andromeda's back so all the passerby could see the shining ring on her finger. 

One of the first things she remembered after waking up from the fog that surrounded most of her year was Bellatrix's engagement to Rodolphus. She was happy for Bellatrix. Rodolphus was a fine match, from a fine bloodline. Andromeda only hoped she could one day make such a successful match.

She felt many people watching her as she climbed onto the train, and held her head higher. No doubt they were in awe, humbled to be in her presence. For some reason, Bellatrix accompanied her onto the train, steering her into a compartment at the back of the train and locking her in with Narcissa, giving Narcissa a meaningful look before leaving once again.

Andromeda had the vague thought that Narcissa didn't usually sit with her. She usually sat with her friends, a bunch of chittering girls in her year. Narcissa had seemed uncomfortable around Andromeda since she'd recovered from her illness, but Andromeda had dismissed it as an odd feeling.

Andromeda stared out the window the entire train ride, sitting with her hands in her lap while Nercissa fidgeted, eventually pulling out a deck of cards and starting a game of solitaire. The trolley witch stopped by, offering her fattening sweets. Andromeda politely declined.

She was watching her figure.

At the feast, Darius and Galea greeted her stiffly, their hands entwined. Andromeda had been writing to them since she'd been well enough to do so, but she was overjoyed to see them. Of course, she contained her emotions to a ladylike hug and smile to both of them.

Once again, she felt like the entire room was staring at her as the sorting went along. She pursed her lips as her cousin Sirius was sorted into Gryffindor, her heart filling with pity for him and his parents. He seemed to have already made friends and was laughing with them loudly, making a ruckus.

Andromeda settled into the familiar dormitory after the feast, her heart filling with anticipation for the coming year. She'd worked hard for the last summer to catch up on all of her coursework so she could stay in the same year. As she drifted to sleep, she smiled satisfiedly. Yes, it had been a good day indeed.

~

Andromeda's dreams were filled with nameless faceless people. They were all sitting around a table, laughing and studying. One of them said something to Andromeda and she hurled a crumpled up parchment at them. She said something back, ducking the fist that came swinging at her. Before she could hold onto the dream, it slipped back into the soup of her mind and she had forgotten it by morning.

"Do you have Charms first as well?" Darius leaned over to look at her schedule and Andromeda nodded, showing it to him.

"I'm not taking Charms," Galea said, "But it looks like we have Herbology today as well."

Andromeda nodded, wondering how many of her classes would be only Slytherin and in how many of her classes she would have to suffer the company of muggle-borns and half-bloods. Unfortunately, her fears were realized almost immediately, as the Charms class was with the Hufflepuffs of all people. She felt someone watching her intently from across the room, and turned to see a blonde boy with a round, boyish face. When they locked eyes, he smiled at her shyly.

Andromeda's stomach filled with disgust and she turned away, but not before letting the disgust show on her face. The boy... Tom? Todd? Whatever his name was, he looked disappointedly at the ground. Professor Flitwick appeared from behind the desk, scanning the classroom. His eyes fell on Andromeda and one of his eyebrows quirked. "Miss Black." he said, surprised. "I wasn't aware you were returning after you left last year."

"Yes, professor." she said demurely. "I was ill, you see, so my parents pulled me out of school so I could properly recover." Andromeda heard a sharp inhale from the other side of the room, where the Hufflepuffs were. 

"I see." he said. "I trust you're feeling better now?"

"Yes sir," she said, nodding. "I was very gravely ill for sometime, but I recovered over the summer. I feel quite well now."

Clunk.

Everyone's eyes turned to the blond boy who'd been watching Andromeda earlier. He'd just knocked his textbook off the table. "Professor, may I be excused to the bathroom?" he asked, now looking very pale and gripping the edge of the desk tight enough to turn his knuckles white.

"Mr. Tonks, class has only just begun—" Professor Flitwick started.

"Please, I'm really not feeling well." he interrupted. Indeed, he was somehow getting paler and paler, now rocking back and forth.

"Very well, Mr. Tonks. Please hurry back."

The boy—Todd Tonks?—stood rigidly and hastened out of the room slamming the door much too hard behind him blinking his eyes rapidly. Andromeda could've imagined it, but she thought she heard the sound of muffled sobbing through the thick stone walls as he walked away.

He didn't return all class, and Andromeda's feeling of being watched became stronger.

Her classes were enjoyable enough, and she wasn't forced to interact much with the Hufflepuffs in Charms, so she was satisfied. At the end of the day, she took a seat on a sofa in the common room with Darius and Galea. The stiffness they'd displayed at the feast the previous night had disappeared completely, and they were now laughing and joking comfortably with Andromeda, falling back into their familiar pattern.

Once again, her dreams contained distant memories. This time, she was staring up at the sky, watching as beautiful streaks of light tore through the sky, reflecting against the lake. Andromeda gasped in delight, and turned to the person next to her— 

The memory was gone from her head by the time she woke up.

Andromeda drifted through her first week of school. By Saturday, the stares that seemed to follow her everywhere had lessened, though the blond boy—she'd figured out his name was Ted—along with a tall Ravenclaw and a Gryffindor with long black hair seemed to always be watching her, though Andromeda chalked it up to her imagination.

~

That Sunday, Andromeda found herself walking across the school with a practiced stride, making her way to an empty classroom. She didn't know why she was going to the classroom, only that she was, and that she had to because... she had to. Recalling the reason was like trying to catch a gust of wind or hold water in her hand, so she didn't.

She arrived in the classroom and looked around. It was unremarkable, with desks spaced evenly throughout and a large, teachers desk in the front of the room. Andromeda walked behind the teacher's desk and peered underneath, wondering if there was something there.

While she was crouched onto the floor, the door swung open and loud voices spilled into the silent classroom.

"—understand, but there's nothing we can do, Ted. Please, just for an hour, can we focus on studying?" The voice was deep, and tired, like it had repeated this same thing many times before. Andromeda's heart skipped a beat at the word Ted. She realized that he was in the room with the Gryffindor and the Ravenclaw.

"No, we can't just give up on her! I know she's in there, under whatever spells or potions they've put her under. She has to be." his voice cracked on the last sentence. Andromeda wondered who they were talking about.

"Ted, please. Just be glad they're not still trying to jinx you in the halls all the time."

Who was trying to jinx Ted in the halls?

"That was mostly Bellatrix, and she's gone now." He said back.

Bellatrix had been trying to jinx Ted in the halls?

"But we don't know how the blond is going to turn out, and it would be best not to antagonize her."

Antagonize Narcissa? All they needed to do was insult her makeup.

"I don't care who I antagonize, we have to save Andromeda."

Andromeda resisted the urge to jump out from under the teachers desk, demand what they thought they needed saving from.

"We will, Ted, but it will take time. Whatever they did to her took time, so it will take time to reverse it. Please, just open your textbook."

Andromeda heard him mutter something, though she couldn't hear it from her hiding place, but there was the shuffle of parchment and they started quizzing each other, throwing answers back and forth. Slowly a headache formed in her temples as she listened to them poke fun at each other. There was something she wasn't remembering, something she knew about this...

"Alright, I think that's it." Andromeda tuned back in as she heard them packing their things, the scrape of the desks on the floor making her grimace. 

Once she was sure they'd all gone, she carefully unfolded herself from under the desk, stretching her sore joints and rubbing at her headache. Why did they think something was wrong with her? And why were they so desperate to fix it? Why was Ted so desperate to fix it?

Andromeda pushed the thoughts out of her head, as they were making her headache worse and waited a few more moments before leaving the classroom.

Unfortunately, there was someone in the corridor walking by the classroom. "Andromeda!" Sirius exclaimed. He walked forward and hugged her, barely coming up to her chest. Andromeda politely patted him on the back as he released her.

His happy expression turned sour, and he said, "Why didn't you respond to my letters all summer? I kept writing to you, but you never wrote back."

"I was sick, Sirius." Andromeda was sure her mother had gotten the letters and just forgotten to give them to her, too focused on making sure Andromeda made a full recovery.

"That's what mother and father said, but I didn't believe them." Sirius said stubbornly. "I never believe them. They're stupid."

Andromeda gave a light gasp. "You shouldn't speak of your elders that way, especially not your parents. You must apologize immediately."

Sirius looked at her strangely, his brow furrowing. "I don't get it." he admitted "Maybe you're better at writing jokes than you are at telling them."

"I am not joking, Sirius. It is very important to show respect to your elders, especially ones so noble as your parents." Sirius seemed to realize she wasn't trying to make a joke, and he stepped back.

"Are you sure you're not still sick?" he asked.

Andromeda pursed her lips, crossing her arms. Very well. If her cousin didn't want to cooperate, it was his loss.

"I hope you change your outlook, Sirius." she said, turning and striding away.

Dear Mother,

I spoke with Sirius today after running into him in the corridor. I fear it is as you said. He disrespected his parents and then refused to apologize, even after I asked him to twice. He also mentioned that he sent several letters to me when I was ill, but I do not believe I ever received them. I am sure they are simply at home. After meeting him in the corridor, I fear what his letters will say. I ask that you not send them to me, though if you wish, you may.

Your Everloving Daughter, Andromeda.

~

Andromeda didn't return to the empty classroom, though she felt herself being tugged there every weekend by some invisible muscle memory. She spent her time studying with Darius and Galea, who seemed eager to spend all of her waking hours by her side, not that she minded. Once or twice, she suggested that they might want some alone time as a couple, but they quickly shut her down with forced smiles.

"Andy, what do you want to do for the Hogsmeade visit? I was thinking we should visit that shrieking shack place. They're saying it's haunted." Darius laughed, wiggling his fingers around.

Galea elbowed him. "Don't do that, or the ghosts will come for you too." she warned.

Hogsmeade... Andromeda was developing one of her headaches again. There was a place in Hogsmeade, a warm place with... she groaned and buried her head in her face, the headache crashing over her mind in agonizing waves.

"Andy?" Galea asked. "What's wrong?"

"Headache." Andromeda gasped, trying to push the thought from her mind. The headaches had started to come at seemingly random, but Andromeda had quickly realized that they were triggered by her thoughts, and if she tried not to think about something, they went away. She'd written to her mother about it, and she'd confirmed it was an aftereffect of her sickness.

Andromeda released a breath as the headache subsided into a dull throbbing that she could push to the back of her mind. "It passed." she said to Galea, giving her a quick smile. She forced her thoughts to start moving again. "I think we should go to the shrieking shack," she agreed. "It sounds interesting."


	2. Headaches

"We will be practicing the anti-jinxes to the following jinxes." Professor Flitwick waved his wand and a list of jinxes appeared on the blackboard in Flitwick's elegant scrawl. "It is essential that you learn these in order to pass your N.E.W.T.'s, as the practical examinations are where many students fail."

Andromeda scanned the list of jinxes, a headache starting to form in her temples. She ignored what had become a near-constant fixture in her life, and turned to Mai, one of her dormmates. "Would you like to partner up?" she asked. Mai nodded, and soon they were jinxing and anti-jinxing each other. Finally, they reached the final jinx on the list. Andromeda felt a spike in her headache as she read the words on the board.

_ Jelly-Legs Jinx. _

"I'm fairly weak in this one." Mai said. "Would you mind if I go first?" Andromeda nodded, and positioned herself so she wouldn't fall on any of the desks.

All at once, Andromeda felt a wave of agony crash over her head and her knees buckled with the pain. This wasn't  _ right _ . She was standing in the wrong classroom, with the wrong person. She was supposed to be somewhere else, she was supposed to be with—

The memory evaded her stubbornly, and her head throbbed harder. Andromeda realized she was leaning over, braced against a desk, sweating with the pain. All around her, people were speaking, but only a handful of words penetrated her bubble of pain.

"—do to her, Mai, she's—"

"—swear, I didn't even—"

"—please, just let me—"

"—gets these headaches—"

"—take her to—"

Slowly, Andromeda pulled herself out of the fog that was taking over her brain. She looked up and saw the entire class crowded around her. Ted looked as if he'd been trying to get to her, but was being held back by several Slytherins.

She inhaled deeply, exhaled deeply. "It passed." she said slowly, even though her head was still in severe pain. "I'm alright. Maybe I just shouldn't practice the—arghhhh—the Jelly-Legs—" she gasped as a spike of pure pain was driven into her head. "...that jinx." she finished finally, forcing herself to stand up.

"Miss Black, are you certain you wouldn't like to visit the hospital wing?" Professor Flitwick asked.

"I'm alright, Professor." Just as she said it, the bell rang and Andromeda turned away, picking up her bag and walking out of the classroom.

Darius soon followed her, and they walked to Herbology. "I'm just going to go to the bathroom and freshen up." she said, peeling away from them and into the nearest bathroom. As soon as she was in a stall, she dropped to her knees and gasped, feeling the headache squeeze at her tightly.

Andromeda rocked back and forth, trying to push the thought of  _ that jinx _ from her mind, to think about anything else. Gradually, the pain subsided to a dull, background noise. Andromeda took a few deep breaths, clearing her mind.

"Hello?" Someone else was in the bathroom. "Are you alright?"

Andromeda froze, trying to make no noise and pretend she didn't exist, but it didn't word. Andromeda saw feet appear under her stall, and heard the knock of knuckles on the door. "Hello?"

Andromeda opened her mouth, taking a second to collect herself. When she spoke, her voice didn't waver or hitch. "I'm alright, thank you."

"Andromeda?" the person asked, her breath snagging.

Andromeda froze. How did this person recognize her, and why didn't Andromeda recognize them? Hastily wiping away tears and rubbing her temples once more, Andromeda stepped out of the stall. It was the Gryffindor girl that was constantly staring at Andromeda. Hazel, or Heidi, or something. "I'm fine." she said forcefully, squeezing her hands tightly behind her back as another bolt of pain ran through her head. 

Andromeda quickly nodded and made her way hastily out of the bathroom, her eyes filling with stinging tears once more. Her headache slowly ebbed away and disappeared as the day went on, and Andromeda was soon focused on her classes once more, the incident in Charms fading to the back of her memory. 

~

Andromeda stepped out of the dormitory and into the common room, blissfully free of the weight of her bag, having dropped it on her bed. She crept up behind Darius and Galea, reaching her hand out to put it on Galea's shoulder, but before she could, she saw that they were bent together, talking to Narcissa of all people.

Andromeda's stomach dropped. They had to be talking about her. She'd never seen them interact before. Andromeda stilled behind them, glad they were too focused on the conversation to notice she'd arrived.

"Mother says that it's because she's making connections to the repressed memories." Narcissa was explaining something to them, wringing her hands. "She says that eventually, she'll make new memories and new connections, but being at Hogwarts isn't helping, because all of the memories were created here."

"Well, what do we do?" Galea asked. "We can't just let her keep having them. She'll figure something out."

"I don't know!" Narcissa hissed. "I'm not the one who suppressed all of the memories. I'll write to my mother again. Just make sure she doesn’t go to the hospital wing."

"We know." Darius said, his voice annoyed. "You said that yesterday."

Andromeda could feel the contempt coming off of Narcissa, but her sister didn't say another word before standing up and leaving the two behind, searching for her own friends. Andromeda hastily stepped back, making it look like she'd just come from her room.

"Andy! There you are. Are you ready to go?" Darius asked, turning. Andromeda quickly rearranged her expression to mask her confusion, and nodded. She kept her facade of normalcy up all through dinner, but her head was spinning, trying to make sense of the conversation she'd overheard.

They had to be talking about her.

They couldn't be talking about her.

Then who were they talking about?

If they were talking about her— _ if— _ then that meant that she had some sort of repressed memories, and they were causing the headaches, not lingering effects of her illness. And if they were talking about her— _ if _ —then that meant they didn't want her to know about the memories. 

Thinking about it all was starting another headache, so Andromeda pushed it out of her mind, resolving not to think about it again. If they had been talking about her _ —if _ —then she was sure her mother had a good reason for not telling her. 

Yes, that was it. Her mother was a very knowledgeable person, and Andromeda trusted her completely. Andromeda dabbed at her mouth with a napkin, and forced the thought out of her mind.

~

Andromeda was standing in an open field, wrapped in his arms. She felt elated, elated because she had won. Her first time, and she had won. They were alone with only the grass and the trees. Her inhibitions flitted away, one by one. Andromeda leaned forward to kiss him, her lips meeting—

The memory faded away, slipping out of her grasp, and by the time Andromeda woke up, it was gone.

"You should've warned me it would be cold." Andromeda snapped at Darius, walking back from a particularly unpleasant Herbology lesson. The lesson had been interesting enough, but Andromeda hadn't been able to focus due to the fact that she was freezing in only her robes. Darius had assured her that she didn't need to bring her coat, despite the fact that summer was very quickly becoming autumn.

"You think I'm happy about this?" he bit back, shivering. The only upside of this was that he'd also been cold the entire lesson. Galea  _ tsked _ , adjusting her coat haughtily. Finally, they made it back to the castle. Andromeda and Darius crowded around the nearest torch, holding their hands out so the fire was nearly touching them.

"I'll go get us seats." Galea called over her shoulder as she walked up to the Great Hall, leaving them behind to warm up. For a few moments, she silently relished in the warmth of the torch, feeling it spread through her body.

"Well," Darius said once he'd stopped shivering. "At least there's one good thing about the weather getting colder."

"What's that?" Andromeda asked, eyeing him in anticipation of a joke.

"Pumpkin pie." he said. "It's your favorite, right?"

Andromeda frowned. It was, but she felt that there was something more to it. It was someone else's favorite too. They'd both smelled it... Andromeda felt the headache threatening in the temples, and she forcefully ignored the thought, focusing on the dancing flames. "Yes, it is my favorite. I doubt they'll start serving it so early, though. Halloween's not for a month."

Darius shrugged. "Miracles do happen. Are you warmed up?"

Andromeda nodded, and they walked down the corridor, seating themselves next to Galea, who was looking excitedly at the table. "Look, Andy! It's your favorite!" she was pointing to a pumpkin pie with two slices missing, its smell wafting out at them.

Andromeda made herself smile, but she felt her stomach plummet. If the thought was enough to bring on a headache, she had no idea what agony the real thing would inflict on her. She put off eating it for as long as she could, though the tempting smell remained in the air, simultaneously making her smile and filling her with dread.

As she polished off her final bite of chicken, Galea reached across the table and plopped a slice of the pie onto Andromeda's plate. She grinned at Andromeda. "You're welcome."

Andromeda realized that they were looking at her expectantly, so she delicately picked up her fork and pushed it down into the pie, moving as slowly as she could. She raised it to her mouth and put it on her tongue.

Andromeda had one second to register that the pie was the best thing she'd ever tasted before her head filled with images. A pot of Amortentia. Sitting in the empty room with three others. Being handed a muffin, though her stomach was too disturbed to want to eat it.

All at once, the memories were gone, leaving her brain feeling like it had just been bleached. She nearly screamed with the strength of the pain that was wrapping around her head and  _ squeezing. _

"Andy?" Andromeda heard laughter and realized she'd fallen off the bench, the hard wooden edge digging into her leg. She tried to get up, but she couldn't focus on anything but the raw, empty space in her thoughts.

"Andy?" this time, the voice was laced with worry. "Darius, stop, I think there's something wrong." The laughter faded away, and Andromeda saw Galea lean over her, her face blurred by the tears in Andromeda's eyes.

Then, she felt another stab of pain, and she shut her eyes, trying to block it out. Andromeda screamed as it became too much. All at once, the sound around her stopped, and Andromeda slipped from consciousness. 

She woke up splayed across her bed. Galea was sitting by her bed, staring numbly at the wall.

"Galea?" Andromeda asked. "What happened?"

Galea blinked and rubbed her eyes. "You had a headache, Andy. A really bad one this time. We were very worried." She rubbed her eyes again, an Andromeda furrowed her brow.

"Are you okay, Galea?" Galea's shoulders sagged a little and she shook her head. 

"Andy," she whispered. "I have something to tell you."

Andromeda sat up fully, facing Galea. "Of course, what is it?"

"I'm going to break up with Darius." Andromeda blinked, a little shocked. Darius and Galea had seemed a little stiff around each other as of late, but Andromeda had just thought it was the normal cycle of relationships, since she'd never been in one.

"Oh." she said finally. "Why?"

Galea shrugged. "There's no specific reason. It's just... not the same anymore."

Andromeda nodded understandingly, though she was still confused. "If that's how you feel." she said. Galea nodded sadly.

"I miss when we were all just friends." She murmured glumly.

Andromeda felt a sudden wave of sleepiness crash over her. She yawned, lying back down. "What time is it?" she asked groggily. Galea looked at the clock.

"Seven." she said.

Andromeda nodded. "I'm just going to... go back to sleep." And she slipped into the black murkiness of unconsciousness.

The next time she woke up, it was pitch black and all of her dormmates were quietly sleeping. Andromeda felt around in the darkness until she found her trunk, searching it blindly for her wand. After dumping nearly all of the contents of her trunk out onto the ground, and quite a bit of squinting, her hand closed around the length of wood. She quietly whispered  _ Lumos _ , surveying all of the odds and ends she'd unearthed from the bottom of her trunk. 

There were loose bits of parchment, snapped quills, single earrings. Her eyes caught on a shining green hair clip. Andromeda furrowed her brow as she picked it up, turning it over in her hand. She had no memory of buying it, or receiving it as a gift.

She brought it closer to her eyes, turning the wand so the light fell on the clip alone, and gasped as the pain hit her head like an asteroid. Andromeda hastily shoved the clip back to the bottom of her bag, focusing on cleaning the floor of the items littered across it, and rolled back into her bed, trying to focus on getting back to sleep, putting the clip out of her mind entirely, no matter how hard the memory persisted.


	3. Remembering Again

Andromeda carefully plucked her gloves off her hands, one finger at a time, shoving them into her pocket when she was done. It was much warmer than she'd anticipated, the sun glaring down on the chilly air, dispelling any ideas of winter.

She saw Darius do the same before leaning forward and bracing his hands on the gate that separated them from the so-called shrieking shack. It looked utterly unremarkable to Andromeda, a lone figure on the hill. She saw no sign of ghosts or any other supernatural being, for that matter. Galea seemed to be having the same thoughts, as she tugged at Darius' hand. "Let's go." she whined. "This was a waste of time."

Darius scowled at Galea, looking to Andromeda for help, but she admitted, "I agree with Galea. Let's go." Darius sighed, giving one last hopeful glance to the shack as they walked back to the main street.

"What do you think we should get?" Darius asked as they strode into the Three Broomsticks. "Butterbeer? Hot chocolate?" Andromeda felt a short sting of pain in her head, and she pushed it away. 

"Butterbeer." she said. Galea nodded in agreement, leading them to a table. As Darius walked away to get them drinks, Galea leaned forward to Andromeda. 

"I'm going to do it today, when we get back to the castle. I don't want to spoil the trip."

Andromeda's eyes widened. "Today? You're going to end it with Darius today?"

Galea nodded, pursing her lips. "I don't think that I can keep pretending any longer." 

Andromeda licked her lips. "Galea, I know you said you don't feel the same about him anymore, but are you sure? If you break up with him, it's probably over forever."

Galea didn't hesitate before saying. "Yes, I'm sure. I want to break up with him today."

Three mugs of butterbeer were slammed onto their table, nearly all of it sloshing over the sides and drenching the tables. "I'll save you the trouble,  _ Gal _ . We’re done.” Darius snarled before spinning around and storming out of the crowded pub.

Galea's eyebrows shot up. "Darius!" she called, shooting out of her chair and following him out the door. "Wait, please!"

Andromeda debated following her, but decided that the two of them probably needed some alone time. She pulled out her wand and started drying the table, peering into the nearly empty mugs. She poured them into one mug and started sipping it, figuring that Darius had paid so she might as well drink it before it got cold.

Luckily, the Three Broomsticks was crowded and noisy enough that only a few people had noticed the private drama that had played out. Andromeda tried to imagine what was happening outside with Galea and Darius. Would she try to explain that she didn't feel the same anymore? Would he accept that they still wanted to be friends?

Andromeda was so wrapped up in her musings that she didn't notice she'd finished her butterbeer until she raised it for a sip and came up empty. She sighed and returned the mugs to the counter before slinking out of the Three Broomsticks. She couldn't see Darius or Galea anywhere on the main street, so she decided to browse the stationary store, give them some space.

"Andromeda?"

"Janus!" Andromeda blinked, seeing one of her old housemates standing in an aisle, piling quills onto a display."You work here?" she asked, motioning at the quills in his arms. He nodded enthusiastically. 

"My parents threw me out!"

Andromeda stepped back. "What? Why?"

"Well, I took your advice and started seeing Celia—that's her name—and when my parents found out that I was with a squib, they disowned me. I've started working little jobs for the Hogsmeade shop owners, and they let me live up there." He pointed to the roof, where a set of stairs led into a second level. "But I don't really mind, because I'm happier than I've ever been! All of those Slytherin expectations are gone." He paused for a moment, smiling dreamily.

"But enough about me!" he exclaimed. "What happened to you? Did your parents throw you out? I was so worried after you disappeared last March. If you need a place to stay after Hogwarts, I can talk to the shop owners. It's cramped up there, but at least it's a roof over your head."

He looked at her expectantly. Andromeda gaped at him, blinking rapidly. Her advice... her parents  _ throwing _ her out...

"What on  _ Earth _ are you talking about?" she asked. "I would  _ never _ advise you to date a... a  _ squib _ . Why would you stoop so low, Janus?" She felt her head start to throb angrily.

Janus stepped back, his eyes flicking over her. "What... what happened to you?"

"If you are referring to my illness, I assure you I am fully healed." Andromeda said shortly.

"Illness? What illness?" Janus' hands stilled as he wrinkled his nose at Andromeda. Andromeda felt another spike of pain.

"I was ill most of last year, Janus! That's why I left in March!" she yelled, her annoyance amplified by her rapidly worsening headache.

"No, you left because you were seeing that muggle-born!" he said desperately. "And then you kissed him after we won the house cup, and Bellatrix found out. Don't you remember any of that?"

The headache was starting to push at her skull, as if it recognized Janus' words. But that couldn't be true. Her, kissing a muggle-born? Her, telling Janus to go after a squib? "No," she gasped. "No, that's not true." she pushed past him, sending the quills skittering all across the floor. She stumbled out of the store, the warm sun washing across her face.

Andromeda continued walking down the main street, disoriented and confused. The things Janus had been saying were so obviously wrong, but they felt familiar, like a faded memory from another life. The more she thought about it, the bigger her headache got, so Andromeda tried to put it out of her mind, rubbing her temples.

She'd been walking down the street aimlessly, not focussing on where she was going, and suddenly, she tripped. Andromeda managed to catch herself before she hit the ground, looking around dully. She had wandered to the end of the street, and was now standing atop some rocks, clambering up them.

Andromeda kept on climbing until the rocks leveled out, revealing a cave. Her headache throbbed excitedly, and Andromeda walked into the cave.

There was someone sitting in the center of the cave, stoking a flame with their back turned to Andromeda. They didn't seem to hear her silent footsteps as she walked one step forward, then stalled in the gaping mouth of the cave. Her headache urged her to keep on going, but she ignored it.

She shifted a little, her shoe scraping against the pebbles on the smooth ground. The person spun around, shock spilling across his face. Andromeda's headache surged, and she stepped forward as if possessed.

"'Dromeda?" his voice was breathless, so full of hope Andromeda's heart ached.

"I..." the words cluttered in her throat. 

"What are you doing here? Do you... do you remember?" He seemed so fragile in that moment, Andromeda feared moving for shattering him.

"I..." The headache throbbed harder, pushing her to step forward again. Ted clambered to his feet so they were standing less than a foot apart. A gust of wind blew her hair forward and it brushed the front of his robes. Her eyes fell to the fire, and the headache spiked in excitement. Andromeda could almost imagine...

"We," she gasped. "We were here."

"Yes." Ted said, his face erupting into a smile. "You  _ do _ remember."

Andromeda doubled over as the headache pulsed almost manically. "Hot... chocolate." she rasped, a thousand small clues swirling around her head. The conversation she'd overheard in the common room. Her headaches, and foggy memories. Janus and his confusion. And Ted. Ted and his strange, incessant need to get to her.

"Yes, 'Dromeda, you're remembering!" Ted seemed ready to start dancing, but Andromeda was ready to drop. She groaned, and Ted frowned, his elated expression breaking.

"'Dromeda, are you okay?"

"No." she said, dropping to her hands and knees. She was vaguely aware of two others entering the cave, cradling butterbeers.

"'Dromeda!"

~

_ “While your mother and I are revolted by this behavior, we have agreed to allow you to remain in our household, as long as you undergo a few... procedures." _

_ "Nothing you will ever do to me will extinguish the way I feel about him." _

_ "We'll see about that." _

_ ~ _

_ "Andromeda, what are your thoughts on mudbloods?" _

_ "Don't say that despicable word. It's a horrible thing to—" _

_ A sigh. "Once more." _

_ ~ _

_ "Where am I?" _

_ "You're at home." _

_ "This isn't home." _

_ "Yes it is, Andromeda." _

_ "It is?" _

_ "It is." _

_ ~ _

_ "Oh, my daughter. I'm so glad you're awake. We were so worried you'd never recover from your illness." _

_ "...Illness?" _

_ "Oh, the healer warned us about this." _

_ "About what?" _

_ "About your memories." _

_ ~ _

All of it came rushing at her in the single blink of an eye, and all at once, the headache was gone, and it was replaced by her memories, so many memories. Nightmares, and quidditch, and studying, and then...

Andromeda pushed her way out of the cave, sucking in the fresh air.

"Andromeda?" Hestia was there with Kingsley, looking as if they’d just arrived. put a hand on her shoulder, looking encouraged when Andromeda didn't shake it off immediately. "Are you... do you...?"

"I," Andromeda growled, her memories solidifying in her mind. "Am going to  _ murder _ my parents."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Do I use too many italics? (The answer is yes.)


	4. The Facade

Andromeda pulled out her wand, fully intending to apparate straight to her—no, her  _ parents _ —home, and give them a piece of her mind, but Hestia snatched it out of her hand, lightning fast.

Andromeda turned to her, clenching her fists. "Hestia." Hestia stepped back, her eyes widening. "Give me back my wand."

"Andromeda—" Hestia licked her lips. "Listen, don't go doing anything  _ rash _ ." But Andromeda's thoughts had already wandered. Her parents weren't here, and she needed her wand to get to them, but she did know someone who was here, and her fists would work just as well as her wand.

Andromeda whirled around, trying to recall where Narcissa liked to spend her trips to Hogsmeade. She started to storm out of the cave, but Kingsley stepped in front of her. "Kingsley,  _ move _ ." she growled. "I need to go talk to some people." her tone made it clear she didn't mean  _ talk _ in the traditional sense. Kingsley's throat bobbed, but he shook his head.

Andromeda finally snapped, flinging herself at Kingsley, fist raised. Hestia grabbed Andromeda's arm before she could punch Kingsley in his infuriating face, but Andromeda yanked her arm back quickly. She threw herself at Kingsley again, and again, and again, starting to scream.

"Get out of my  _ way _ , they did this to me, they—" her screaming deteriorated into incoherent babbling as she threw herself forward over and over. Hestia and Ted worked with Kingsley to try to stop her, but Andromeda persisted, kicking and screaming.

And then she was sobbing. She wasn't sure when the rage turned into despair, but suddenly it was, and Andromeda felt all of the strength drain out of her, the weight of it all making her collapse to the ground. Luckily, her three friends were there to catch her, and she drew some comfort in their warmth as they all sat together on the floor of the cave, Andromeda crying into them.

It took nearly an hour for the tears to fade, and Andromeda's friends didn't leave her side the entire time. Finally, Andromeda extricated herself from them and stumbled out of the cave, the sun's warmth enveloping her.

"I'm sorry." she whispered, drinking in the crisp air.

"For what?" Kingsley asked. She felt him standing behind her. She turned around, though she kept her gaze locked on the ground.

"This... it's all my fault. I shouldn't have let myself get carried away after the game. I... I ruined everything." her voice became thick with tears, but she couldn't find the energy to cry.

"'Dromeda..." Ted started delicately.

"Andromeda, that's ridiculous." Hestia interrupted rudely. "None of this is because of you. This is all because of your family." Her voice was hard and filled with hatred. Andromeda felt the same hatred fill her heart.

"They tried to suppress my memories." Andromeda's voice was hollow. "I can remember now... they just kept on putting spells on me until I couldn't think, and then they told me... that I was sick." 

Ted made a pained sound in the back of his throat.

"Why can you remember now?" Kingsley asked, a bit of curiosity shining through the concern in his eyes.

"I think it was this place, the cave." she motioned around weakly. "Our first date." she smiled lightly, her eyes briefly flicking up to meet Ted's. He smiled at her hesitantly, and Andromeda felt her stomach twist with regret and longing, and a little bit of love.

"So," Kingsley summarized. "The memories are still there, but they were pushed down somehow."

"Yes." Andromeda agreed. "That's why I kept getting headaches, like when we did Jelly-Legs Jinxes, or when I found the hair clip in my bag. I overheard something that Cissy—" Andromeda couldn't keep herself from spitting the name out. "—said. She said that the headaches were there because I was making connections to my old memories. That's why it was so bad here, because I've been only been here once."

Kingsley nodded, his eyes brightening. "I think I understand it." 

There was a pause as they all absorbed it, the cave filling once again with the sound of the fire crackling. "What...what are you going to do?" Hestia asked finally, her voice cautious. 

"Well, I was going to apparate to my parents' home and give them a talking to, but someone took my wand." She smiled wryly at Hestia, who grinned back. 

Ted, however, looked alarmed. "No, you can't!" he blurted. "If you—if they find out that you broke the spell, then they'll do it again. And—and you might not be able to break it this time!" his voice rose with panic.

Andromeda's stomach filled with dread as she realized it was true. This time, they might just obliviate her altogether, and then she'd never regain the memories. "You're right." she admitted. "They can't know that I know."

"Well then, we'll just have to make sure they don't find out." Hestia's voice was strong and firm.

Andromeda looked up. "I can't ask any of you to—" she started.

"But we will." Ted cut off determinedly.

Andromeda surged forward and wrapped her arms around Ted, burying her face in his shoulder. She realized that sometime in the last few months, she'd grown taller than him, but his arms still fit around her perfectly, just like they always had, just like they always would. "I'm so sorry." she whispered to him, to only him. She tried to imagine Ted looking at her with the same disgust and revulsion she knew she'd been looking at him with, and her heart filled with regret and pain.

She pulled away after a moment, already missing his warmth, and turned to Hestia and Kingsley with a new determination in her eyes. "Alright," she said. "How will we do this?"

~

The sun was nearly two-thirds of the way through it's journey by the time that Andromeda left the cave, her friends following her. They stood at the mouth of the cave, the cottages of Hogsmeade only just visible in the distance.

"We should split up now." Kingsley said.

"Yes." Andromeda agreed.

They didn't move.

"Alright, seriously." Hestia sighed, adjusting her stance on the rocks.

"Fine, just one more thing." Andromeda turned to Ted, pulled his face close to hers, and kissed him slowly, her hands running through his hair with a practiced, familiar ease. Hestia groaned, muttering something under her breath. Andromeda ignored her, smiling at the way that Ted's hands found her waist, his hands resting slightly on her hips.

Finally, they broke apart, both grinning. "Was that really necessary?" Hestia asked. Kingsley, as well, looked slightly nauseated.

"Yes." said, pushing Ted away. "You all go first. I'll follow in a few minutes."

They clambered down the rocks, fading into the crowd beneath until Andromeda could no longer differ them from the rest of the people milling about. She checked that the fire had been properly put out, kicking the ashes around, before following their path down the rocks. 

Before walking back to the castle, Andromeda made a stop at the stationary store. She couldn't find Janus anywhere in the aisles, so she crept up the stairs and knocked lightly on the door of his flat.

A young woman, her hair piled in a bun on her head, answered. "I'm sorry, is Janus here?" Andromeda asked. The woman nodded, her hair flopping about on her head.

"Let me go get him." she stepped back and stuck her head into the next room. "Janus, someone's here to see you." she said. Andromeda heard papers shuffle, then saw him step out of the room. As soon as he saw her, his face hardened. He shifted slightly, so he was standing in front of the woman.

"What are you doing here, Andromeda?" he asked. "Come to lecture me about pureblood values?"

"No!" Andromeda exclaimed. "No, I'm so sorry about that. I was under an enchantment." She explained to him about her memories, and the part he'd played in driving her to the cave, and regaining her memories.

His expression went from angry to horrified to pitying as the story played out. The woman, who Andromeda realized must have been Celia, looked at her with a similar range of emotions.

"Andromeda, I'm so sorry—" Janus said.

Andromeda cut him off. "No, I completely understand. I just wanted to thank you." she turned to Celia. "You seem like a wonderful woman, and I'm so happy for the both of you." Smiling, she leaned forward and embraced Janus once before turning and creeping her way down the stairs once more.

Her mood dropped steadily as she reentered the castle, finally arriving at the Slytherin common room. The first thing she noticed was Darius and Galea sitting at opposite ends of the common room, both glaring at parchment in their laps.

Only a few hours ago, Andromeda would have been filled with pity and torn between which of her two friends to visit, but her heart had hardened to Galea and Darius. Not only had they helped Bellatrix after the quidditch game last year, they'd spent the entire year  _ conspiring _ with her family to ensure that Andromeda didn't find out the truth. She suspected that the reason they'd wanted to spend so much time with them was solely to keep her away from anyone who might spill the truth. A thousand little moments piled up in her mind. The way that they always chose the most isolated table in a classroom, the seat at the Slytherin table with the fewest people around it. How they were always trading glances over her head, steering her away from Ted or Hestia or Kingsley.

So no, Andromeda didn't feel bad that her two best friends had broken up and that their friendship was almost certainly ruined. In fact, one might even say that Andromeda was glad that her two best friends had broken up and that their friendship was almost certainly ruined, as it meant that they were distracted.

However, Andromeda had a role to play, so she pulled a mask of concern over her features and walked carefully to Darius, tapping his shoulder. "Are you alright?" she asked.

Darius scowled. "You knew she was going to do it. You knew, and you didn't tell me." his voice was wounded.

_ Yes, and you knew that I've been walking around with my memories suppressed for the past three months, and you didn't tell me _ . she thought. 

"I didn't know if I should. It was something for her to say." she said instead.

Darius  _ hmphed _ , turning his focus back down to the parchment, ignoring her. Andromeda felt a stab of annoyance, but she was mostly glad that the conversation was over. Reminding herself that she needed to keep the pretense up, Andromeda straightened and walked to Galea.

"Are you alright?"

~

Herbology was the only class that the Slytherins and Ravenclaws shared, so it had to be done in Herbology. Luckily for Andromeda, the seventh years had access to all of the plants, even to the most dangerous ones.

Andromeda waited for the Professor to wander away before deliberately guiding her Devil's Snare to wrap around Kingsley's arm. He noticed quickly and pointed a beam of light at it. It recoiled back into the pot, wrapping around itself.

Kingsley scowled at her. "Ten points from Slytherin, Andromeda. Detention if I see you trying it again."

"It was just a joke," she sniped, channeling her inner Bellatrix. "You blood traitors really need to loosen up." she prodded her plant once more, and the arm wrapped around Kingsleys hand. He shook it off, annoyed.

"Detention." he retorted sharply.

"How dare—" Andromeda started, seething.

"I am Head Boy." he countered quickly. "I can give as many detentions as I please."

Andromeda couldn't argue with that, though she spent the rest of the class making rude remarks about him under her breath. She approached him after the end of class. "And what will my detention be, Your Head Boyship?" her voice dripped with sarcasm.

"Meet me in the empty classroom on the fourth floor at three on Saturday. It needs some cleaning." he winked before pulling the calm mask over his face once again. "Be late and it will be another detention."

Andromeda sneered at him before spinning around and storming off with Galea, who was too busy stealing glances at Darius from across the room to notice how scripted the entire interaction had been.


	5. Detention

That Saturday, Andromeda gave an annoyed, sighing, goodbye to Darius and Galea, who were still too focused on ignoring each other to pay much attention to Andromeda, and made her way to the familiar empty classroom.

She dropped her sullen look as soon as she closed the door behind her, grinning at her friends.

"Ah, looks like you're late for detention." Kingsley said gravely. "You'll have to come back next week."

"That's a shame." Andromeda replied, dropping into a chair. "I was so looking forward to trying to convince my friends to acknowledge each other's existence." Hestia snorted at this.

"Shall we start with Charms?" Kingsley asked.

Andromeda nodded, summoning her bad from the desk she'd hid it in yesterday after lessons. Her stomach ached with laughter by the time they were done studying. Andromeda hadn't realized how much she'd missed this, just being friends with them.

She glared sourly at the door as they packed their bags, Hestia accidently brushing some parchment off the desk. Ted noticed her expression and squeezed her hand lightly. "Hey," he said softly. "Don't worry. We'll be here the same time next week."

Andromeda sighed and nodded, trying to be thankful that they'd even devised this scheme and she had this time with them. She stood up, kissing Ted briefly before stepping out of the door, wearing the scowl of a Slytherin who'd just been objected to cleaning an empty classroom, which, for all intents and purposes, she was.

Andromeda only got one more week of studying with them before the winter holidays dawned upon them once more. Andromeda's fists curled at just the thought. This Christmas was an extra-special one, as it would be doubling as Bellatrix's wedding, meaning that nearly the entire pureblood community would be converging on the Lestrange estate, and Andromeda would be in the middle of it all.

She voiced her dread that weekend during her "detention," fiddling with her quill.

"I'll write to you the whole time." Ted offered. Andromeda shook her head frantically.

"No, the letter might be intercepted. We can't risk it." Ted slumped in his chair, looking disappointed.

"It's just the Blacks and the Lestranges?" Kingsley asked again. "No one else?"

Andromeda shook her head. "Just my family, including my aunt and uncle...oh, I'm so stupid."

"What?" Hestia asked, leaning forward as Andromeda slapped her forehead.

"My cousin, Sirius. He'll be there!"

Hestia grinned. "Tricky one, that. He and his friends set off dungbombs in the common room. He is absolutely a Gryffindor. If he's there, you'll be fine."

Andromeda nearly slapped herself again when she realized she hadn't even told Sirius about the recent developments. "I haven't even told him I've gotten my memories back! He probably still hates me!" she exclaimed. "Hestia, would you tell him? I don't want to be seen in case Cissy is there."

Hestia nodded. "Of course. I'll tell him everything, and swear him to the utmost secrecy."

"And Reg will be there too. He's a good one, not very loud. Maybe he'll turn out alright, like his brother." Andromeda still felt like flipping a table at the thought of attending her sister's wedding, but her despair had definitely abated.

"Oh, Hestia!" Kingsley said, looking at the clock. "It's time for us to go." he gave a meaningful look to Hestia, who nodded, giving him an equally meaningful look back.

"You're absolutely right, Kingsley. We should go for our prefects meeting." she said robotically.

Andromeda furrowed her brow. "Oh you have a prefects meeting? Aren't they usually on Sunday?"

Kingsley shrugged. "It's this new headmaster."

"Don't the Head Boy and Head Girl schedule those meetings?" Andromeda persisted.

"Well, yes..." Kingsley looked down. "But...ah..."

"Better be going!" Hestia yelped. "You two can finish up on your own. Goodbye!" she grabbed Kingsley's arm and dragged him out of the room.

Andromeda looked to Ted, who was trying to keep from laughing. "What?" she asked. "What's wrong with them?"

"I asked them if they could leave early so we could have some time to ourselves." Ted said past his giggles. "I never told them they needed to make an excuse, but apparently they felt they needed to." he dissolved into full-blown giggles, his face turning red.

Andromeda felt her heart melt a little and she scooted her chair to the side, closer to Ted's. "Some time to ourselves?" she asked.

"Like a date." he said plainly, his giggles fading away.

"Like a date?" she asked.

"Uh-huh."

Andromeda stood from her seat, and Ted stood with her. "Where are we going for this date?" she asked, linking her arm in his.

"To the theater, of course." Ted said, enunciating the word  _ theater _ . "As fine lords and ladies such as ourselves do."

"Of course." Andromeda replied, nodding regally. "We shall sit in a top box, where we cannot see the stage properly."

"Naturally, all the others will stare at us enviously." Ted walked her to the other side of the room and pulled out a chair for her.

She sat delicately, and he took a seat next to her. "After the play, we shall walk around the city and make comments about the use of irony in the play."

Ted finally broke, laughing into his hand. Andromeda broke as well, leaning into him and resting her head on his shoulder. "I hope I can take you to the theater someday." he said softly after they'd quieted down. Andromeda lifted her head from his shoulder, turning to look at him.

"One day," she promised. "We will go to the theater together." She sealed it with a kiss, which quickly turned into a full snog, Andromeda abandoning her chair for his as they moved closer and closer together.

Too soon, it was time for Andromeda to leave, and she pushed her way out the door, scowling, though all she wanted to do was smile and sing with joy.

~

When they arrived at Kings Cross the next weekend, Andromeda found her mother waiting for them just as she had last year. She greeted her appropriately, her insides twisting with fear. Was she being too polite? Not polite enough? Would her mother be able to tell that her memories were back?

They made a short stop at their home, picking up their fancy dress robes and jewelry. Andromeda wanted nothing more than to take her green hair clip, but she resisted, knowing it would be a dead giveaway to her mother.

Finally, arms laden, they apparated to the Lestrange estate. Waiting for them on the front lawn, her robes brushing the grass and curly hair bouncing in the wind, was Bellatrix.

Andromeda forced herself to smile and accept Bellatrix's hug, reciprocating with equal vigor. "Andy, I've missed you so much!" she exclaimed. "I can't wait until you graduate so we can spend time together again!"

Andromeda had no intention of ever even speaking with Bellatrix after she graduated, but she nodded. "I can't wait either."

She watched Bellatrix greet Narcissa as well, then followed her into her new home, the Lestrange estate. She'd been there a few times before, but it had been quite some time and her memories of the place were faint.

She had to admit it was grand, much grander than her own home. Bellatrix was doing well for herself. Andromeda was escorted upstairs, to a guest bedroom. She started to make herself at home, but was quickly startled by a commotion downstairs. She raced back downstairs, a grin splitting across her face when she saw that the other Blacks had arrived. She pulled a mask of calm respect over her face as she greeted her aunt and uncle, then gave Reg a brief hug.

When she arrived at Sirius, she whispered to him. "Did Hestia tell you?"

"Yes." he whispered back. Andromeda smiled, pulling away from him.

They, too were escorted upstairs and given rooms. Andromeda was happy to find that her and Sirius' rooms were right next to each other. Narcissa peeked her head into Andromeda's room. "Dinner will be in thirty minutes." she said. Andromeda nodded, pulling out a hairbrush.

As soon as Narcissa had dissapeared in her own room, Andromeda crept out of her room and into Sirius'. She smiled at him as she shut the door behind her. "Andy, is it really true?" he asked. "All those things about your memories?"

Andromeda nodded. "But you absolutely can't tell anyone, okay?" Sirius nodded.

"I'm really good at keeping secrets." he bragged. "There's something I know about one of my friends..." he looked around shiftily. "...But I can't tell you."

Andromeda laughed. It was probably just a crush on an older student or something that seemed like the end of the world when you were eleven. "Well, Sirius, since we're tho only ones who know, we have to protect each other from the purebloods at the wedding, agreed?"

Sirius nodded gravely. "Absolutely."

"Good." Andromeda said. "First, we must prepare for this dinner."

Sirius nodded again, his glossy hair bouncing.

~

The dinner had gone well enough, thanks to Sirius and Andromeda trading looks and notes under the table the entire time, making fun of everything from the silverware to the way that the Lestrages pronounced  _ silverware _ .

The next morning, breakfast passed similarly. Andromeda spent the entire day faking a headache, though she was actually sitting in her room and playing card games with Sirius, snickering softly whenever the cards exploded in either of their faces. That night, unfortuantely, was the rehersal for the wedding, which would be in three days, and Andromeda had to be there as a bridesmaid, along with Narcissa. The silky silver robes felt like poison on her skin, and her stomach turned as she saw Bellatrix making her way down the aisle, her strut more pronounced than usual.

Andromeda and Sirius survived the next three days only because they had each other. Andromeda tried to socialize with the rest of the family as well, but she could only stomach so much superiority, and she always made her way back to Sirius, giggling at whatever Bellatrix had said that time.

Finally, the day of the wedding dawned. Andromeda confirmed her appearance with her mother before making her way down into the large ballroom, where the wedding would take place. She nearly knocked into a harried house-elf as it scurried into the kitchen, muttering to itself. It didn't even glance at her. Finally, the clock struck six, and muffled  _ cracks _ rang out from outside the house. The guests were lead inside, Andromeda shaking everyone's hand, smiling politely. 

Soon, she was escorted down the aisle by Rodolphus' brother, Rabastan, and stood beside the altar. The band stuck up a slow but happy piece, and Bellatrix started striding down the aisle, dangerously gorgeous in dark red robes, her hair bound tightly in a knot. Her eyes swept over the crowd, her lips curling in a satisfied smile as people looked at her with admiration. Andromeda locked eyes with Sirius, who mimed gagging. She supressed a smile.

Andromeda harldy paid any attention as Bellatrix and Rodolphus exchanged empty vows, knowing that the marriage was purely borne of pureblood need to remain untarnished. Finally, Bellatrix and Rodolphus exchanged a short, cold, kiss, and the room erupted in cheers.


	6. Solidarity Between Cousins

"So, you're up next, Andromeda?" Andromeda suppressed the sigh, turning to Abraxas Malfoy and his wife, whose name Andromeda couldn't remember. The wedding was  _ still _ happening, no matter how hard Andromeda wished for it to end.

She smiled. "I suppose I am." she ducked her head, shyly not meeting their eyes. She did intend to get married, but definetly not to the person they had in mind. However, she was playing a part, so she let her eyes travel to Corban Yaxley, standing in the corner. He was two years older than her, and her parents had made it clear he was their first pick to be her husband. Abraxus and his wife tittered, nodding to her.

"Marriage really is beautiful, isn't it?" she asked Andromeda, glancing to Bellatrix and Rodolphus. She followed her gaze to the two of them, who were talking with as much familiarity as two strangers.

"Truly beautiful." she agreed, sipping her drink.

"May I ask the lady for this dance?" Andromeda turned to see Sirius, his hair slicked back and perfectly tailored robes hanging off his skinny frame.

"Oh, how adorable." Abraxus' wife cooed. Sirius scowled at her, wrinkling his nose.

"Of course," Andromeda said graciously, giving a nod to the Malfoys before following her cousin onto the dance floor. He barely came up to her shoulders, so the dance was rather awkward, but Andromeda was more than happy to stumble through the dance if it meant she didn't have to pretend to want to marry  _ Yaxley _ .

"Thank you so much for saving me," she told him. "They were asking me when  _ I'm _ going to get married."

Sirius pulled a face. "You're too cool to get married." 

Andromeda pulled the word from the recesses of her mind. "How do you know muggle slang?" she asked, spinning him around.

"I have my ways." he shrugged, trying to look mysterious, but he instead looked like he'd eaten one too many rotten apples. Andromeda laughed, and Sirius scowled at her.

"And what do you mean I'm too cool to get married?" she asked. "You know I plan on marrying someday?" 

Sirius wrinkled his nose at her. "Why?"

"For love, of course." she said.

"Alright then." he said, though he still looked unconvinced.

She danced with him twice more, then left him, knowing if she stayed with him the entire time, people would become suspicious. She ducked into the bathroom after a particularly agonizing conversation with her aunt about the evils of muggle-pureblood relationships.

She lingered for as long as she could in the bathroom, rinsing her hands off slowly and drying them even slower. Finally, she exited the bathroom, surveying the room for someone who would be only mildly annoying to talk to. Her eyes latched onto a five year old Greengrass, but before she could make her way there, Bellatrix the beautiful bride intercepted her, steering her to the table she shared with Rodolphus.

"Andy, I feel like we've hardly spoken." she said. "Tell me about your year so far? Are all the teachers talking abour N.E.W.T.'s yet?"

"It's all they talk about." Andromeda responded, not missing a beat. "I don't think it's  _ that _ important." They shared a laugh.

"It's probably that new headmaster, the muggle-lover." she rolled her lip into a sneer. "Dumbledore. He was a bad Transfiguration professor, and I'm sure he's a worse headmaster."

Andromeda remembered that he was a kind and patient teacher, one who never assgined too much homework. "I haven't seen much of him." she said simply. 

"That's good." Rodolphus had joined the conversation. "Our lord says that he can corrupt even those with the purest beliefs. And you..." he trailed off as Bellatrix glared at him. "...and even you could fall prey to his ideals."

Andromeda looked at him blankly, pretending not to notice his slip up. "I'll keep that in mind." she said graciously, vowing to do the opposite. Slowly, guests trickled out of the estate, and soon, it was deep into the night and only the Blacks and Lestranges remained, though there was now one fewer Black, and one more Lestrange.

_ Bellatrix Lestrange. _

Andromeda felt a chill run through her. The name fit her sister eerily well, as if she'd been born to hold it.

~

The rest of the holidays passed torturously slowly, Andromeda and Sirius passing most of the time with one another, wishing they were back at Hogwarts. The only spot of light was that Bellatrix and Rodolphus had left for their honeymoon to France the day after the wedding, so Andromeda didn't have to deal with Bellatrix's speeches, or Rodolphus' slimy ideals.

The Lestranges had insisted that they spend the rest of the holiday together, and Andromeda suffered through the gift exchange, accepting the jewelry and perfume. What she really wanted was to exchange gifts with her friends at Hogwarts, and she could tell Sirius felt the same way.

At last, the holidays ended, and Andromeda packed her trunk once again with barely contained glee, humming as she pressed the robes down so they would fit properly. On the train, Andromeda sat with Darius and Galea, thanking them for the chocolate sent her through owl. They had started talking to each other again, but their speech was stilted and forced. The compartment was unbearably awkward, and Andromeda soon excused herself to the bathroom just to get out of the tension-filled air.

As she walked down the tiny corridor along the train, she saw Ted, Kingsley, and Hestia in a compartment, talking easily. She glanced up and down the train, making sure there was no one to witness as she slipped into the compartment. She quickly slid the door open and waved her wand to fog up the glass.

"I can't stay for long." she said immediately.

They all grinned up at her from their seats. "Hello to you too, Andromeda. My holiday was very nice, thank you for asking. What about yours?" Hestia asked pointedly.

"Mine was terrible, thank  _ you _ for asking. I felt like punching everyone the entire time. And you, Kingsley?" Andromeda's voice was saccharine sweet and her smile stretched from ear to ear.

Kingsley looked a little startled, but he responded, "Fine, thank you." Ted, however, frowned at Andromeda worriedly.

"Was it really that bad, 'Dromeda?" he asked.

Andromeda sighed, dropping her forced smile. "It wasn't as bad as I'd expected, mostly because Sirius was there. He kept me company for most of the time."

Ted's face relaxed a little, and he cracked a joke, "Should I be jealous?"

"Of Sirius? No, he's much too Gryffindor for me." Andromeda gave a friendly smile to Hestia.

She glanced behind her, noticing that the window was loosing its foggy sheen. "I have to go, I'll see you all later."

"Alright, bye." Kinglsey said, peeking his head into the corridor. "It's clear."

Andromeda nodded at them all once more before ducking out of the compartment and making her way back to her own, which had, if possible, become even more awkward in her absence.

~

The day after they arrived back from their holiday, Andromeda tried to hex a Gryffindor fourth year in the hallway, missing on purpose. Hestia was more than happy to assign her a detention for it, barely restraining herself from hexing Andromeda back.

Darius, for his part, seemed to realize that it meant that Andromeda and Hestia would be alone together, and sent a hex at the same poor fourth-year, though Hestia was able to cast a shield charm before any damage could be done. "Ten points from Slytherin." she sneered. The fourth year snickered at them, but it quickly faded into surprise when Andromeda smiled brightly back at her.

Andromeda quickly dragged her friends away before they could try to get a detention again, snarling about lunatic Gryffindors.

~

"Was the comment about my mother really necessary?" Hestia asked as they met that week. It took Andromeda a moment to realize to what she was referring, but when she did, a grin spread across her face.

"I was just playing a part." she said as innocently as she could.

"Hmph." Hestia said back, showing a remarkable amount of self-control and dropping the matter.

"Anyway," she said, pulling somethings out of her bag. "I have to give you your Christmas gifts!" she plunked them down on the table, in front of their recipients. For Ted, she'd gotten a painting of a meteor shower, the bright light captured perfectly in the steady strokes of the paintbrush. For Hestia, she'd gotten a pair of knitted gloves, the yellow, red, and orange colors enchanted to dance and crackle like a fire. And for Kingsley, she'd gotten a book entitled  _ Blood Brothers: My Life Amongst the Vampires _ , because of his interest in vampires.

They all smiled at her gratefully, then glanced at each other. "We all pitched in to get you a gift." Kingsley explained, pulling something from his bag.

He handed Andromeda a sheet of empty parchment. "Thank...you?" she asked, flipping it over to see if there was something on the back.

"Write something on it." Kingsley prompted, unable to keep the smile off his face. Andromeda dipped her quill into ink and wrote on it.  _ My name is Andromeda Black. _

Kingsley held up three more pieces of parchment. Andromeda gasped when she saw that they all read  _ My name is Andromeda Black. _ in the exact place she'd written it on her own parchment.

"They're enchanted, you see." he explained excitedly. "Whatever you write will appear on the other four. If anyone besides one of us tries to read it, all they see is class notes!" he looked extremely excited at this.

Andromeda finally caught on. "So we can talk to each other anytime! Oh, that's brilliant! Where did you get it?"

Ted chuckled. "Kingsley charmed it. It was some very tricky spellwork, but he managed."

Kingsley tried to look modest, but he was very obviously proud of the gift. "Thank you so much!" Andromeda exclaimed, leaning to the side to hug Kingsley happily. "I'll cherish it always."


	7. The Headmaster

They met again the next week. As Andromeda walked into the spare room, she was startled by the silence. Normally, Hestia was talking by now, but today she only sat, fists clenched and staring down at her lap.

"Hestia?" Andromeda asked. "Are you feeling alright?"

Hestia simply nodded tightly, not looking up at her. Andromeda glanced at Ted and Kingsley, but they both looked equally mistified. "Let's... get started, then." Kingsley said finally.

They started working, the room eerily silent without Hestia cracking jokes and teasing them. Finally, after twenty minutes, a strange look came over her face and she looked determinedly up at them. "I have something to tell you." she said resolutely, though she still did not meet their eyes.

"Alright." Ted said encouragingly. "What is it?"

Hestia licked her lips, her facade faltering. "Before I tell you... can you promise that you won't think any less of me? Because what I'm about to say is... pretty big."

Andromeda's stomach squeezed, her curiosity building. "Of course, Hestia. You can tell us anything."

"Yeah." Ted echoed. "We'd never think less of you."

Hestia nodded, finally looking up at them, though her eyes flicked back down quickly. "I...am..." she took a deep breath and seemed to steel herself. "I'm a lesbian."

The room went totally still, Hestia's face pursed in a nervous, baited expression. Andromeda blinked, turning the words over in her head.

Finally, the silence was broken by Ted's voice. "A lesbian? You mean you like..."

Hestia nodded. "Girls, I like girls."

Andromeda saw Hestia's hands flex in her lap, betraying her anxiousness. Mostly on instinct, she reached out and took Hestia's hands, startled by the surprise that flashed across Hestia's face. "I don't think any less of you, Hestia." she assured, trying to inject as much compassion in her voice as possible.

"Neither do I." Kingsley added quickly. Hestia's mouth started to curl up in a smile, but she looked at Ted, who was looking at the ground, confused. He realized they were all looking at him, and an easy smile broke out across his face.

"Of course I don't think any less of you, Hestia. We've known each other for years." Hestia's shoulders sagged and she blinked rapidly, no doubt trying to get rid of tears.

"Thank you." she whispered, turning back to her homework and starting to work again, clearly ending the discussion.

It was a little awkward at first, but by the time the hour was up, they'd fallen back into their familiar pattern and the uncomforatbleness from earlier had all but dissapeared. Still, as they said their goodbyes, Andromeda could tell Hestia was still nervous, her hand fiddling with her quil.

Andromeda gave Hestia a quick hug before she left, whispering in her ear, "Thank you for telling us." before disappearing out the door.

~

On Monday the following week, an unfamiliar owl swooped into the Great Hall and landed on Andromeda's shoulder, offering her a small, tightly wrapped scroll. She took the scroll at once, and the owl flew away as she unfurled it.

Written in slanted writing, was the following message:

_ Miss Black, Please come to my office at seven o'clock tonight. I have matters to discuss with you. _

_ Signed, Professor Dumbledore _ .

Andromeda's heart beat fast as Darius and Galea read the note over her shoulder. What could the headmaster want to see her about? She glanced up at the teachers table, but he was talking jovially to the Defense Against the Dark Arts professor, seemingly oblivious to Andromeda.

"What do you think he wants?" Darius asked, spooning porridge into his mouth.

Andromeda's mouth was dry as she answered. "Perhaps theres a problem with my schedule, or my N.E.W.T.'s. I hope not." She tried to put it out of her mind, but she was still preccupied all day. By the time seven o'clock arrived, Andromeda felt like her stomach was full of snakes.

The first thing that Andromeda saw when she walked in was Kingsley, Ted, and Hestia lined up in front of the headmasters desk, their hands clapsed behind their backs. Andromeda's heartbeat sped up wildly as she wrinkled her nose in fake disgust, standing as far as she could from the three of them. Dumbledore stood up from his desk, blue eyes sweeping over them emotionlessly. After a pause, he started.

"I noticed that you've been recieving a lot of detentions recently, Miss Black." he stated. Andromeda said nothing, resisting the urge to look panickedly at her friends. "My predecessor informed me about the, ah... incident last March, though I was at a Transfiguration convention up in Norway. I was more than a little shocked to meet you again at the start of the year."

Andromeda shifted. Should she say something? He forged on before Andromeda could decide.

"And then I saw all of these detentions you've been recieving." his eyes twinkled. "If we were to say, hypothetically, that a group of friends wanted to meet in secret, then this would be a very clever way to go about it."

A pause.

"Hypothetically, of course. And if I were to say, hypothetically, that if you called me a muggle-loving old coot, then I would have to assign you detention every Sunday for the remainder of the year, what would you say to that?" He leaned forward on his desk, looking pointedly at Andromeda.

She hesitated slightly before speaking. "I would say that you were a muggle-loving old coot that doesn't deserve to lick my boots."

"Such language, Miss Black?" he asked calmly. "Well, that's absolutely unacceptable. I'm afraid I'll need you to serve detention every Sunday for the rest of the year. Of course, I will be writing to your parents to explain why you will be spending every Sunday away from your friends. I'm sure that Mister Shacklebolt and Miss Jones would not be averse to supervising you. And if they bring their friend Mister Tonks with them, then that is their choice."

Andromeda's heart galloped with joy, but she needed to ensure that this was done correctly. "Where will I need to serve these detentions, sir?" she asked, her voice flat.

"I think that cleaning the fifth dungeon will serve as adaquate punishment for your foul launguage, Miss Black. No one ever has any reason to go there, so I'm sure that there is plenty for you to clean."

"Every week, sir?"

"I'm sure you'll find something to occupy your time, Miss Black. I will put that it the capable hands of Mister Shacklebolt. You are dismissed." he waved his hand.

"What did he want?" Galea asked Andromeda as she undressed in the dormitory.

"Just to see why I've been getting so many detentions." Andromeda put the necessary contempt in her voice.

"What did you tell him?"

"That he was a muggle-loving coot who wasn't worthy to lick my boots."

" _ Really _ ?"

"Yes." Andromeda supressed a smile. If only Galea knew.

"Well, what did he do?" Galea leaned forward.

"Gave me detention for every Sunday for the rest of the year." Andromeda said, pretending to be dissapointed. "It was still worth it."

Galea snorted. "You're turning into Bellatrix." she commented, rolling into her bed and pulling the blanket over herself.

The thought made Andromeda freeze. She knew she was only doing all this to be able to spend time with her friends, and away from the Slytherins. But... what if she  _ was _ turning into Bellatrix?

No, she couldn't be. If she was turning into Bellatrix, her friends would notice, and they would tell her. No, she would never be like Bellatrix.

As her dormmates went to sleep, Andromeda scribbled on the parchment. 

_ Is anyone there? _

_ I am. _

_ Me too. _

Andromeda smiled. She'd grown familiar with Ted and Hestia's handwriting, and had even grown fond of his precise, small writing and her large, sweeping words.

Andromeda:  _ That Dumbledore really is something. _

Ted:  _ I was so worried he'd tell us we couldn't meet anymore. _

Hestia:  _ Me too. _

Andromeda:  _ Do you know the dungeon he told us about? _

Hestia:  _ Yes, I've never been in it. I've seen it a few times on my patrol. It's perfect, better than the empty classroom. _

Ted:  _ Do you think he really expects us to clean it? _

Kingsley:  _ No, I went by there. It's the cleanest room in the castle. _

Andromeda:  _ Oh hello, Kingsley _ .

Kingsley:  _ Hello, Andromeda. _

Andromeda smiled at his trite response. She could almost see his exasperated expression. "Andy?" one of her dormmates asked, sitting up in the darkness. "What are you doing?"

"Just copying some notes, Mai." Andromeda said quickly. "Go back to sleep."

Andromeda didn't see Mai's expression as she settled back onte her bed and started to breathe softly again.

Andromeda:  _ I'm disturbing my dormmates. I should go. Goodnight _ .

Hestia:  _ Goodnight _ .

Ted:  _ Night, Dromeda. _

Kingsley:  _ Good night. _

Andromeda smiled faintly at the parchment before waving her wand to make the ink dissapear. She knew nobody else would be able to read it, but she'd rather be safe than sorry.

They met in the dungeon that Sunday. After it had been warmed up with a few charms, it was a rather cozy little place to study in, and Andromeda soon grew fond of it. 

They continued communicating with the parchment, one person asking if anyone was there and the rest responding almost immediately. Andromeda knew that the three of them could speak to one another anytime they wanted, and it warmed her heart when they went out of their way to use the parchment instead.

She was sitting in the library with Darius and Galea, all of them working on an essay for Herbology. Andromeda was planning on working on it later, in the dungeon, so she pulled out the parchment instead, bending over it.

To her surprise, there was a message from Ted already there.  _ Is anyone there? _

_ I am _ . she responded quickly, not knowing how long it had been on the parchment.

Ted:  _ Dromeda, good! I've been meaning to ask you—are you going to the quidditch game next week? _

Andromeda:  _ Yes, I was going to go with D and G. Why? _

Ted:  _ I was thinking we could skip and spend some time together. Everyone will be at the game, so we'll have the castle mostly to ourselves. Let's make it a date? _

Andromeda:  _ I'll have to get rid of D and G. Perhaps fake a headache? If I can, I'd love to _ . Before she could stop herself, Andromeda drew a small heart next to her words, suppressing a giggle.

Ted:  _ I can't wait _ . He drew a heart as well. Andromeda's stomach flipped happily.

Hestia:  _ Stop using the parchment to flirt. _

The spell that had fallen over Andromeda broke, and she nearly laughed out loud, catching herself at the last second.

Andromeda:  _ Sorry, Hestia _ . Grinning to herself, she drew a small heart next to these words at well, happily imagining Hestia's expression. The only response was a large, angry blot on the parchment. Andromeda couldn't tell if it had been an accident or not, but before she could ask, Galea tapped her on the shoulder.

"Are you done yet?"

Andromeda nodded, not wanting Galea to read the parchment, lest she realize that Andromeda had not been working on an essay. "Let me just write my name." Up in the corner, making sure to hide the script with her hand, she quickly scribbled  _ I have to go _ .

Shoving the parchment into her bag, Andromeda stood. "I'm ready." she said, smiling tightly. As had become the norm the past month, Andromeda walked between Darius and Galea as they made their way back to the Slytherin common room, not speaking.

Andromeda knew she should probably intervene and make them talk it out, but, in all honestly, she was enjoying watching them suffer. They'd lied to her so easily it was difficult not to scream at them every day.

As soon as they arrived in the common room, they were intercepted by Narcissa. "I need to talk to Andy." she declared, not waiting for an answer before dragging her away by her wrist.


	8. Alone Time

"What is it, Cissy?" Andromeda asked neutrally, though she wanted to shake her sister off.

Narcissa, for whatever reason, dragged her into the fourth-year girls dormitory, giving her dormmate a glare, making her scamper out of the room. "I need your help." she said as soon as the girl had left.

"Well, with what?" Andromeda asked.

Narcissa paused before responding. "Lucius Malfoy...asked me to Hogsmeade next weekend." Andromeda's eyebrows shot up. It made sense. They were only a year apart in age, and Lucius had always seemed interested in Narcissa, even when she was just a first year.

"What's the problem? Don't you like him?" she sat on a bed, anticipating a long conversation.

Narcissa groaned. "I... I don't know. I think so. I mean... I always did."

Andromeda felt conflict errupt in her. Should she tell Narcissa what she really thought, that Lucius Malfoy was a creep who would never truly love her, or should she play the obedient daughter, lest Narcissa suspect anything?

Eventually, Andromeda found a compromise. "Cissy... I think you should follow your heart. If you want to go with him to Hogsmeade, then do it. If you don't, then don't." she tried to be as vague as possible while also trying to convey the word  _ no _ with her eyes.

Narcissa rolled her eyes. "Follow my heart? You're useless, Andy!" she flopped down on her bed, pressing her face into a pillow. Andromeda sensed that this was the end of the conversation, so she slipped out of the room carefully, hoping Narcissa would make the right choice.

~

On Saturday, Andromeda woke up with her hand clutching her aching stomach. Or, at least, she appeared to be. "I don't feel so well." she groaned. "You two go ahead, I'll just take something for this and be along shortly."

Galea looked unhappy to leave Andromeda alone, but she nodded. "Be as quick as you can." she implored.

Andromeda nodded, pretending to be focused on the imaginary pain in her stomach. As soon as everyone was gone from the dormitory, Andromeda flung off the covers and got dressed, pinning her hair up in the green clip before creeping out of the empty common room and making her way down to the dungeons.

Ted was waiting for her there, his hands shoved in his pockets. His face brightened when he saw her. "Good morning!" he greeted happily.

"Good morning!" she greeted, equally happily, the prospect of spending the entire morning with him brightening her eyes. Her stomach rumbled annoyedly, and Andromeda's eyes dropped to it, realizing she hadn't eaten breakfast.

"You haven't eaten?" Ted asked.

Andromeda shook her head. "I told Galea I had a stomachache."

"Well, then I know where we should go first." he grinned. By now, everyone was making their way down to the pitch, a few late risers finishing their breakfasts in the Great Hall. Ted, however, led her right past the Great Hall, and down to the basement.

"Are we going to your common room?" she asked, remembering the last time she'd been there.

"No, even better." he said, stopping in front of a painting of some fruit. He reached out and tickled the pear, and the painting swung open. Andromeda stepped back and blinked as a mass of house elves approached them. She'd known there were house elves at Hogwarts, but  _ wow. _

"Master Ted!" one said happily. "What can we does for you, sir?"

"Hello there, Slinkie!" Ted greeted, stepping into the kitchen. Andromeda followed him. "Andromeda hasn't eaten breakfast, so I was hoping you could give her a little something?" Andromeda blanched at the way that Ted asked, not ordered, the house elf. She'd never even imagined treating a house elf like that.

"We woulds be happy too, sir!" within seconds, a plate was shoved into Andromeda's hands, filled with all of her favorites. She ate quickly, the house elves, except for Slinkie, abandoning her and Ted to swarm around the kitchen.

"Slinkie, how have things been around here?" Ted asked. Andromeda thought she couldn't get even more amazed, but astonishment filled her. Ted was treating the house elf like it was a real person. 

_ And why is that so astonishing? _ A voice asked, from the back of Andromeda's mind. At once, the astonishment was replaced with shame. She couldn't believe that she'd thought herself open-minded for being friends with non-purebloods, when she'd been treating house elves like garbage the entire time. She remembered the harried house elf at the Lestranges home, the one she'd nearly knocked over. She hadn't even apologized to it—no, to  _ him. _

"Very good, Master Ted!" Slinkie chirped. "We is doing our work well, and our masters is pleased!"

"Oh, you know you don't need to call me master, Slinkie." Ted said, sounding as if he'd reiterated this many times before.

At once, Slinkie's wide grin faded. He looked utterly hopeless. "But...yous is Slinkie's master." he said. "Slinkie can't..."

Sensing that Slinkie was on the verge of an emotional breakdown, Ted quickly backpedaled. "It's alright, Slinkie! You can call me Master!"

Andromeda crouched down next to Ted, setting down her now-empty plate. It was immediately collected by a house elf moving so fast that all Andromeda saw was a blur. "Slinkie, thank you for breakfast." she said as kindly as she could. "It was delicious. I would also like to compliment you on your pumpkin pie. Ted and I both enjoy it very much." she smiled at him.

"Slinkie thanks you very much, Mistress Andromeda Black!" he bowed, practically vibrating with excitement.

Ted smiled at her proudly, and Andromeda felt warmth spread through her. "Shall we go?" he asked. Andromeda nodded, waving a goodbye to Slinkie as they left the kitchens, closing the painting behind them.

They wandered the corridor in silence for a few minutes, going nowhere in particular. "What should we do?" Ted asked.

"Dunno." she said. "Just us... and an empty castle." she started to smile wickedly.

"Yes." Ted said, woefully innocent.

Rolling her eyes, Andromeda pushed Ted up against the wall and started to kiss him, making as much noise as she pleased. He caught on quickly, and soon, his hands were on her waist. Andromeda relished in the way his lips made her feel as if she was on fire, like they were the only people in the world, like the entire universe was contained to them, in this empty corridor.

She didn't know how long they were there, drinking each other in, but she did know that when they finally broke apart, her hands were throughly tangled in his hair and she'd never felt more alive.

"I love you." she whispered, resting her forehead against his.

"I love you too." he said, without missing a beat. Andromeda smiled and kissed him again.

~

The game lasted three hours, and Ted and Andromeda spent the entire time wandering the castle, talking and kissing (mostly kissing). They heard the sound of the entire school trouping into the castle once more, and split up sadly, though they would see each other tommorow.

Andromeda made it back to her dormitory a few minutes before Galea, quickly changing into her nightclothes once again before pretending to be asleep. Galea shook her lightly, and Andromeda pretended to wake up, blinking rapidly.

"Andy, you never came to the game. Are you feeling alright?" Galea whispered lightly. "You look a little flushed."

Andromeda sat up, looking around confusedly. "I...oh, I completely forgot!" she pretended to look distressed. "I meant to go take the potion, I really did, but then I fell back asleep and I completely missed the game!" she looked at Galea, who was smiling faintly. "Did we win?"

Galea furrowed her brow "Did we...oh, no. The keeper is absolute rubbish."

Andromeda pulled the cover off herself, pretending to shake off the sleep. "Then what are you so happy for?"

"Oh, well..." Galea shifted a little, her hand going to the back of her neck. "Darius and I got back together." she blurted. Andromeda froze. "Well, you know we haven't really been talking, but you weren't there, so we got to talking, and we figured we might try again."

Andromeda desperately calculated whether this was a good thing or not. Would this distract them from Andromeda, or would they focus more on her without their angst? "That's wonderful!" she exclaimed nonetheless, embracing Galea. "I'm so happy!" 

Galea tried to play off her excitement, but Andromeda could see it in the way her finger tapped on her leg, and the way she held herself more loosely. Andromeda felt that before, she would have felt truly happy about this development, but now all she felt was a detached sort of pity. 

After lunch, Andromeda sat in the common room next to her two friends, hiding the parchment in the pages of her book. They were too busy whispering to each other to notice that she was scribbling all over the book she was supposed to be reading.

Andromeda:  _ D and G got back together. _

Kingsley:  _ Do you think they'll pay more attention to you now? _

Andromeda: _ I don't think so. They're very distracted with snogging at the moment _ .

Kingsley:  _ Gross _ .

Andromeda: _ I know _ .

Hestia:  _ Now you know how we feel. _

Andromeda:  _ Ted and I aren't nearly as bad as them. _

Hestia:  _ I beg to differ _ .

Andromeda:  _ She's currently on his lap, in the middle of the common room. There are children here. _

Hestia:  _ You would be just as bad if you could be. _

Ted:  _ No we wouldn't. _

Andromeda:  _ Exactly _ .

Ted:  _ We'd be much worse _ .

Andromeda:  _ Ted! _

Kingsley:  _ Alright, I'm leaving. _

Hestia:  _ How does it feel to be so utterly betrayed, Andromeda? _

Andromeda:  _ Feels like you two have been on the butterbeer. _

Ted:  _ Have not _ .

Hestia:  _ I have, but what's that got to do with anything? _

Andromeda:  _ Oh, Merlin _ .

They wrote back and forth for nearly an hour, Kingsley popping in and out every once in a while to make a wry remark about their collective intelligence. 

Andromeda noticed that Darius and Galea had untangled, and she wrote out a goodbye, stashing the parchment away and pretending to be reading once more.

"Andy, are you ready to go for dinner?" asked Galea. 

Andromeda nodded, smiling. "Let's go."

She was mostly silent during dinner, pondering the rest of the year in her mind. It was mid-May, meaning she only had a month and a half until the end of the year. Only a month and a half until she was free. It was a strange feeling. She wanted nothing more than to be free of her parents, be able to truly be with Ted, but she felt a strange longing for the way things had been at the same time. She managed to ignore the feeling, but it nagged at her as she went to sleep, until her detention the next day.

Hestia looked happier than usual, a fact that Andromeda did not miss.

“What are you grinning at?” She asked playfully.

“Hestia’s got a  _ girlfriend. _ ” Kingsley teased, making her lean over and slap his arm.

“She’s not my girlfriend!” Hestia exclaimed. We just kissed, that’s all!”

Kingsley snorted. “Snogged, is more like it.”

“Who is it?” Andromeda interjected, leaning forward.

“Emmeline Vance.” Hestia said, a smile coming to her lips.

Andromeda’s eyebrows shot up. “The Head Girl? You certainly aim high, don’t you, Hestia?”

Andromeda was rewarded with a slap of her own, but Hestia was smiling at her anyway.

Before they started studying, Andromeda cautiously posed the question, "What... are you going to do after Hogwarts?"

"I'm going to begin my Auror training immediately." Kingsley said confidently, not missing a beat.

"Travel a little, see the world." Hestia replied.

"I'm going to be a healer." Ted said, though Andromeda already knew this. "Why? What are you going to do, 'Dromeda?"

Andromeda hesitated, because she didn't know. "I'm...not sure. My parents opened my gringotts vault on my seventeenth birthday, so I have enough money to move out and live for at least a while. But... all my life, I've just been expected to get married to someone rich like Corban Yaxley—" she wrinkled her nose. "—and be a housewife. I've never really thought about a career." she spilled.

"Well, what do you like to do?" Hestia asked. Andromeda sighed, racking her brain.

"I don't know... quidditch? But I'm nowhere near good enough to play professionally." she said finally.

"What do you mean?" Kingsley asked. "You were certainly the best on the Slytherin team last year, and maybe even—" he looked a little sick as he said. "—maybe even better than the Ravenclaw keeper."

"Yes, you were!" Hestia exclaimed. "And the Hufflepuff one as well!" Andromeda raised an eyebrow at her, and Hestia shrugged innocently. "I can't speak for the Gryffindor keeper."

"You were better than them too." Ted assured Andromeda.

Possibility started to bloom in her mind. Andromeda Black, professional keeper. A smile curved up her lips. "It isn't completely out of the realm of possibility." she admitted.

The three of them cheered, Hestia clapping her on the back. "Your name will go down in the history books." she told Andromeda.

She felt like a weight had been lifted off her shoulders as she started to study, a process that took nearly two hours because of the impending N.E.W.T.'s. 

As they packed their things, Andromeda saw Ted throw a meaningful look to Hestia and Kingsley, making them hurry out of the room, leaving the two of them alone. "'Dromeda..." he started hesitantly.

"Yes?" she asked.

"Well, I know you were saying that you have enough money to live on your own and all, but I was wondering..." he bit down on his bottom lip.

Andromeda smiled at his nervousness, already able to tell where this was going. "What were you wondering?" she prompted.

"Well, if you'd want to move in with me. After Hogwarts." Ted explained. He'd hardly finished the sentence before Andromeda wrapped her arms around him, squeezing him tightly.

"Yes, of course." she whispered.

He laughed. "Really?"

"I would love to." Andromeda said.


	9. Goodbye

The next month was filled with piles and piles of homework as the N.E.W.T.'s drew nearer. Andromeda had thought that the O.W.L.'s had been ridiculous, but this was truly mad. Their study sessions lengthened into three hours, not that Darius and Galea noticed, as they were too busy studying. 

One Sunday, after her detention, Andromeda tentatively hovered her quill over a pot of ink. She'd gone over the job pamphlets that teachers had been showering them with since fifth year once more, finding the one for becoming a quidditch player. The requirements were that she win at least one game on her school team (done), and apply for a tryout (working on it).

Andromeda's stomach squeezed as she filled in the form, filling in her name and her position on the team. She hovered over the "team" portion. She'd never really followed quidditch, mostly because her mother had forbidden her from following an organization that allowed muggle-borns to play freely with purebloods. Finally, she checked the  _ any _ box, and before she could stop herself, sent the form with one of the school owls, two sickle fee enclosed.

"When does the Charms exam start?" Andromeda startled as Darius came up behind her.

"Nine, I believe." Andromeda said. "Then lunch."

Darius nodded, then made an adjustment to his parchment.

~

The next week, they studied for five hours, and Andromeda still didn't feel prepared. 

"We'll do fine, right?" Hestia asked. "We're smart people."

"Of course." Kingsley reassured. He seemed to be the least affected by the exam jitters that had washed over the fifth and seventh years. "We've worked very hard. I'm confident we can all recive top grades."

"That's easy for you to say." Andromeda said. "You're some sort of genius." her tone was waspish. Ted put his hand on hers comfortingly.

"Let's all just calm down." he said soothingly. They all softened a little, Andromeda taking a deep breath.

"I'm sorry." she said. "You're right. We'll do fine."

"Yes." Hestia agreed.

Standing, they all nodded at each other before making their way out of the dungeons.

~

Exam week passed torturously slow. She was so mentally exhausted that she hardly talked to Darius and Galea all week, scribbling out good morning and good night to her friends on the parchment every day.

Finally, they were over. Andromeda felt both incredibly relieved and incredibly stressed about her results. She'd known nearly all of the answers on the practical exams, and she could tell that most of her technical examinors had been pleased with her work, but still, she felt anxious.

Andromeda knew that her N.E.W.T.'s didn't even really matter if she wanted to be a keeper professionally, so she focused most of her attention onto her friends, whose careers would depend heavily on the results of their N.E.W.T.'s.

That Sunday, Andromeda pretended to be unhappy about having to serve her final detention as she waved goodbye to Darius and Galea, who were enjoying the nice weather. As soon as she entered the dungeon, Hestia tackled her in a hug.

"Andromeda!" she cried. "It's over! We did it!"

Andromeda returned the hug, her eyes falling on a half-empty bottle of firewhiskey on the table. "Ah." she said. "I see."

Ted raised his eyebrows. "Kingsley and I have only had a glass each, so you can imagine." 

Hestia giggled, still holding onto Andromeda. Andromeda carefully slipped out of her embrace, though Hestia didn't seem to notice. She gave Kingsley a happy hug as well, then kissed Ted. Hestia was too drunk to make any remarks.

"Alright, pour me a glass." she ordered. Ted obliged, and they sat around the table, relaxed. "That Herbology exam." Andromeda wrinkled her nose. "I definetly got the practical exam wrong."

"Ugh, no exams!" Hestia exclaimed. "No more exams!"

Andromeda threw back the firewhiskey and grinned. "All right, all right. No exam talk. Did you hear about the boy who nearly lost an eye trying to get to the whomping willow?"

Kingsley laughed. "He was in my house."

"Guess not all Ravenclaws really are intelligent, then." Ted said. They all looked at him, shocked.

"What?" Hestia sqeualed. "Did you just  _ insult _ someone?"

"Sure you've only had one glass, Ted?" Andromeda asked. "This firewhiskeys doing strange things to you."

Kingsley was openly grinning. "Looks like Hufflepuff extroadinare has a bit of a mean streak."

"I  _ like _ it!" Hestia exclaimed, pouring herself another glass.

"Hestia, are you sure you want to have another?" Andromeda threw a bemused look at Kingsley.

"Absolutely!" she drained it, seemingly unfazed by the taste.

Kingsley shrugged, then procured a bottle from his robes.  _ Sobering Potion _ he mouthed.  _ Just in case _ . Andromeda nodded, relaxing a little. If Hestia got too crazy, they had a backup.

"I'm going to miss this place." Hestia said mounrfully, oblivious to the interaction that had just occured.

"Me too." Ted agreed.

"Me three." Kingsley added.

They all turned to Andromeda when she didn't add on. "Eh." she said, shrugging. For whatever reason, this was absolutely hilarious to them, and they broke down in laughter, which they couldn't stop for several minutes.

By the end of the hour, the firewhisky bottle was empty, Ted had insulted three other people, and Andromeda and Kingsley could hardly breathe for laughter. "I have... I have to go." she said, looking at the clock through the haze in her vision.

"Goodbyeeeeeeeeee." Hestia exclaimed. Andromeda stood up and picked up her bag.

"I have to go." she giggled.

"Wait!" Ted exclaimed, his eyes going wide.

Andromeda felt her heart skip a beat, and she dropped into a defensive stance. "What?"

He stood up, grinning sillily and kissed her sloppily. Andromeda kissed him back, equally sloppily. Kingsley and Hestia whooped and whistled, until finally they broke apart.

"Bye." Andromeda said, her hair falling into her face as she waved at them once more.

Galea and Darius were too busy snogging to notice how drunk Andromeda was when she arrived back at the common room. Unfortunately, Narcissa noticed how she stumbled through the doorway, her eyes unfocused.

"Andy?" she asked. "Are you...drunk?"

"Maybe..." Andromeda tried to hide behind her bag, but it was too small.

"Where did you get drunk?" Narcissa asked, crossing her arms and tapping her foot. 

"In the dungeons,  _ mum _ ." Andromeda said teasingly. "With— _ hic _ —my friends." Narcissa looked around, a little bit panicked. Luckily, most people were outside enjoying the last few days of the term, and no one had witnessed the unseemly display.

Narcissa grabbed Andromeda by the arm, dragging her to a table. "Andromeda." she said firmly. "What do you mean, your friends?"

Andromeda knew she wasn't supposed to tell Narcissa about her friends, so she cleverly lied. "My friends, Testia, Hingsley, and Ked. You don't know them." The color drained from Narcissa's face, and her grip on Andromeda's arm tightened. "You look like a ghost." Andromeda informed her quietly, tugging at one of her sisters pale blond locks.

Narcissa shook her off, taking a deep breath. "I... I didn't hear any of this. She doesn't know what she's saying." she told herself. "Go sleep this off, Andromeda." she instructed gently leading her to the seventh year girls dormitory.

"Alright, Miss Ghost." she chorused, collapsing on her bed and falling asleep easily.

Andromeda was shaked awake by Mai in time for the end-of-term feast, which she couldn't enjoy much, partly because she was stuck at the Slytherin table, and partly because she was sporting the mother of all headaches. She could tell that her friends weren't faring much better, except for Kingsley, who must've taken the sobering potion.

The next morning, Andromeda dragged her trunk behind her as she made her way out of the school with the rest of the seventh years. Instead of being pulled along on the carriages, the seventh years made their way back across the lake, the same why they'd arrived in their first year. Andromeda blinked back tears as she watched the large castle fade into the distance.

Leaving Hogwarts was bittersweet for her. On one hand, she'd spent most of her time there a bigoted pureblood, and she regretted many of her actions. On the other hand, Hogwarts was where she'd met Ted. It was where she'd spent Sunday after Sunday with Kingsley and Hestia.

Andromeda could tell that nearly all of her peers were crying as well, and she smiled tearily at Ted, who was in a boat near her. 

"Let's find a compartment?" Galea asked. Andromeda shook her head.

Galea smiled, like Andromeda had made a joke, but Andromeda was deadly serious. She'd spent hours thinking about what she'd say to them when she was finally able to stop pretending. People swirled all around them, finding friends and compartments. "Stop messing around, Andy." Darius said. "We've got to hurry if we want to find a compartment."

"I'm not messing around." Andromeda said, taking a deep breath. "Darius, Galea, you two have been two of my closest friends ever since I arrived at Hogwarts." Galea smiled at her fondly, but Andromeda wasn't finished yet. "However, last year, that changed." Both of their smiles faded. "I met people who changed my life and showed me what a terrible person I was. They helped me realize what terrible people you were.” She paused.

“But, no, I thought. They're like me. They've just been raised wrong. They have good in them. So I forgave you."

She paused.

"And then I made a mistake. A small mistake, really. I kissed the boy I liked. I was taken away and brainwashed again. And do you know what you did? You helped. You may not have cast the spells, but you helped. You lied to me. All year, you lied to me. You told me I had been ill, you kept me from the people I love, you made sure I never found out what had happened to me. And for that? I can never forgive you."

Her voce remained calm and objective through the entire speech, though Andromeda wanted to scream at them, curse them to suffer like she had. She knew that staying calm would make her speech a thousand times more effective.

"Ready, 'Dromeda?" Ted appeared from behind her, where he'd been lurking, pretending to fiddle with his trunk.

"Absolutely." Andromeda responded, looking straight at Darius and Galea as she accepted his hand and strode off. As soon as they were on the train, Andromeda released a shaky breath, smiling to herself. "How was that?"

"Brilliant." Hestia declared, stepping into a compartment. "The look on their faces."

"Legendary." Ted agreed. Andromeda smiled and sat down next to him, stretching her legs out in the compartment. They spent the entire train ride talking happily. For once, Andromeda didn't have the urge to look back every second, make sure no one would see her, and it was the most freeing feeling she'd ever experienced.

Her stomach filled with anxietly once more as the train slowed to a stop. She'd confronted her friends, now it was time to confront her family.

As she'd hoped, Bellatrix was waiting along with her mother at Kings Cross. Ideally, her father would have been there too, but she had to make do. She saw Sirius dragging her Aunt and Uncle toward them, and smiled. So Hestia had relayed the message.

"You all go ahead." she instructed her friends. "I'll meet you outside the station when I'm done."

Hestia snorted. "We're going with you."

Andromeda's eyes went wide, and she looked at them. "No, you can't. It could become messy." Andromeda had chosen a public place to stage her confrontation in the hopes that they wouldn't want to cause a scene, but she still coudn't be sure.

"We don't care." Kingsley said bluntly. "We're going."

Andromeda looked pleadingly at Ted, but he shook his head. "You can't stop us. We know what we're getting ourselves into."

Andromeda sighed. Darius and Galea had gotten off the train and were walking towards her family, so it was now or never. She shoved her trunk into Kingsley's arms. "Hold this." she instructed, gathering all of her courage and striding, back straight, out of the train. She waved her wand and Darius and Galea found themselves frozen in place before they could reach her family.

"Mother." she greeted coldly. Her mother nodded, but froze when her gaze traveled to Andromeda's euntorage.

"What are you doing with my sister?" Bellatrix snarled. "You can't corrupt her again, we've made sure of it."

Andromeda smiled placidly. "You did, didn't you? You used all the spells in your arsenal to ensure that I would forget them, forget the people I love. I'm afraid it didn't work."

Andromeda paused to take in her mothers aghast expression, reveling in the disgust coming off her.

"You are a group of cold, uncaring bigots. All you ever do is put others down, why, because they have different blood than you? Don't you realize how incredibly ridiculous that is? It doesn't matter if a person is pureblood, muggle-born, or a squib. I don't know why you can't just realize that." Unlike with Darius and Galea, her voice was full of passion because she knew it would hurt them more.

"I'm done with you, this whole family. I'm done with all of this blood purity nonsense, and I hope that one day you will be too."

Bellatrix growled and stepped forward, raising her wand, but she was stopped by Druella. Andromeda's mother was shaking with anger, her normally serene face tight. She raised her own wand, and whispered " _ Obliviate _ ."

" _ Protego _ !" Hestia yelled, before the spell had even crossed half the distance between mother and daughter. "How  _ dare _ you—"

It was Andromeda's turn to hold out her arm. "Hestia, they're not worth it." she advised. "Let's go." with a wink to Sirius and a final, cold nod to her mother, Andromeda turned around, holding Ted's hand, and walked away. She conjured a shield charm on their retreating backs, just in case, but they were too shocked to do anything.

As soon as they were far enough that the steam obscured them, Andromeda squealed and threw herself at Ted, kissing him unabashedly. He laughed and reciprocated.

"I'm so proud of you." he whispered.

" _ Ahem _ ." Andromeda pulled away from him to see a short woman with sandy blond hair like Ted's. At her side was a girl, one or two years younger than Andromeda, who was giggling and very red in the face.

"Hello, Mum." Ted said, stepping back from Andromeda, but not dropping her hand. Andromeda realized that Hestia and Kingsley had gone to greet their own families. "This is Andromeda."

Andromeda stuck out her hand to shake, trying to hide her mortification. "It's nice to meet you, Mrs. Tonks."

"Andromeda, was it?" Mrs. Tonks didn't seem angry, just politely interested. "That's an interesting name."

"It's a family tradition." she explained. "We're all named after galaxies, or stars."

"I see."

"Is she your girlfriend?" the girl, who must have been Ted's sister burst out, becoming even redder.

Mrs. Tonks elbowed her. "Karen, don't be rude!"

Ted, however, laughed easily and nodded. "Yes, she is."

Karen nodded, examining Andromeda. "She's taller than you." she observed.

"I don't mind." Ted said.

"Well, we should get going." Mrs. Tonks said. "Are you ready, Ted?"

Ted glanced at Andromeda. "You'll be alright? You know where to apparate and all?" Andromeda nodded, squeezing his hand.

"You go. Spend some time with your family." Andromeda turned to search for Kingsley, who she realized still had her trunk. After hugging him goodbye, making him promise to use the parchment often, she apparated away to her flat, which she'd purchased over owl from Hogwarts.

It was empty, her very own place. For as long as she could remember, Andromeda had been with others, whether it be her sisters, or her dorm mates. Now, she was alone.

She felt tears start to build in her eyes, and she raised her hand up to her hair, fingering the clip. She ran her hand over the familiar lines.

She may have been alone, but she was surrounded by love.


End file.
